1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to laboratory equipment, and particularly to a planchet holder for electrodeposition of materials onto a select side of a planchet to substantially reduce analysis time of the material deposited thereon.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a typical spectroscopy analysis of certain materials, such as polonium-210 (210Po), a substrate in the form of a metal disc or planchet is submerged in a beaker containing a sample or solution with polonium to be electrodeposited onto the planchet. The planchet is a blank metal disk, typically made from nickel, silver, or an alloy of nickel and silver. The solution and planchet is placed on a magnetic hotplate and stirred for about four hours to permit electrodeposition of 210Po onto the planchet. Since the planchet is freely floating in the solution, both faces or sides of the planchet will be plated with 210Po.
Since the planchet is coated on both sides, the time for spectroscopic analysis can be overly long. For example, it requires about 22 hours per side to obtain a complete alpha spectroscopic count of the plated material. That equates to a total of 44 hours per planchet. Moreover, the integrity of the count can potentially be compromised by the planchet being exposed to magnetic forces and the beaker walls during agitation by the magnetic hotplate.
Thus, a planchet holder for electrodeposition of materials solving the aforementioned problems is desired.